Chocolate Bunnies
by PatrioticPuppy
Summary: After an awkward comment by Balthier, a bet made by a viera, and certain blonde pulled along for the ride, what will FFXII come to next? Here's what...THE WORLD’S FIRST EVER VAAN x FRAN PAIRING!


Disclaimer: Don't own FXII, own the plot. 

Pairing: World's first ever Vaan x Fran pairing! (laughs) light Balthier x Fran because they're hot together, and light Vaan x Panelo cause they're simply the canon pairing…

Summary: After an awkward comment by Balthier, a bet made by a viera, and certain blonde pulled along for the ride, what will FFXII come to next? WORLD'S FIRST EVER VAAN x FRAN PAIRING!

A/N: Okay, I don't know why, but I really like this pairing. Why? I have no idea…anyways, this will probably remain a oneshot, unless people convince me otherwise…

x.

Chocolate Bunnies

By PatrioticPuppy

x.

Fran had always managed to tolerate Balthier, despite his overly smug attitude and nonchalance towards anything that appeared threatening of his invoice. Though she had always appeared to be his back-up word-of-wisdom adviser, the sky pirate would always seem to have time to add in a few teasing jokes about her.

At first, they were amusing; meager references such as her looks and the way she spoke, which managed to break a smile into her every now and then. However, one misplaced sentence finally broke a strand somewhere in her; and she wanted payback.

The Lhusu Mines had been rather obnoxious, to say the least; not to mention having to flee from that twisted head-hunter Ba'Gamnan and his equally psychotic cronies; by the time everyone had reconvened outside the mines, nearly all in the party suddenly wished to beat someone over the head, none heeded on whom it was they were to hit.

Already put in a slightly flustered mood, Fran stood to the side as the group hid behind a pillar, watching their so-called 'Lamont' speak towards Judge Ghis and the Marquis in such a manner that would normally land someone in the Nalbina Fortress. Still, such actions led to the discovery of his true identity, Larsa Ferrinas Solidor, to which the lad had so kindly rescued Panelo from further punishment.

Sharp eyes darting over to Vaan's disheveled form, Fran had to sigh in aggravation. "Don't worry," she said, her voice thick with a slight accent. "I believe they will treat her well." She held a certainty in her voice, which she believed comforted Vaan, as his shoulders relaxed, and his frown watered down into a simple line of normality.

Still, there lay uncertainty in his shining chocolate eyes. As if to lay that reluctance at ease, Balthier stepped forth, a slight smile playing along his face. "The girl will be fine. After all, no one knows men better than Fran does."

That comment left a sour feeling in the pit of Fran's stomach. Feeling restless, she waltzed up and gave Balthier's head a little shove. "I would think that a cowardly sky pirate, who's paid but a pittance every now and then, would learn to keep his mouth shut," she retorted, earning stares from the men in her quarry. Ignoring their surprised expressions, the bunny girl began walking out of the entrance to the Lhusu Mines with a sense of priority. "The Marquis has taken Panelo to his estate. I highly doubt we'd be able to arrange an audience with him at this time."

Taken out of his reverie for the time being, Balthier quickly cleared the steps, the other two men taking an awkward glance towards each other before following. The sky pirate easily caught up with his partner before answering, "Perhaps we could possibly create some sort of upstart, possibly attracting enough attention to which that the Marquis would be forced to see what was happening?" Raising a quizzical eyebrow towards his unusually-behaving companion, he added, "That spontaneous enough for you, doll?"

His calm demeanor was met with a glare to be frowned upon. "I suppose so," came the unwitting reply.

Displaying a sudden show of uncharacteristic behavior, Basch stepped in, suggesting that he finally reveal himself to be alive; being that Ondore underhandedly supported the Insurgence, they would surely be met with an audience. Given no other choice, the remaining three members agreed.

"Now, to raise a clamor to gather the townsfolk and gain their attention," Balthier murmured aloud.

Eyes glinting with sudden interest, Vaan jumped to the chance, his sun-bleached hair seeming to perk up around his head. "Hey! How about this?" Striking an anticlimactic pose, Vaan shouted, "I'm Captain Basch Fon Ronsenburg of Dalmasca!" His loud boasts echoed around the Lhusu Square, earning him the pointed, incredulous stares of many boisterous Bhujerbian citizens clustered around.

Blinking back the unexpected exclamation provided by their youngest member, Balthier said in a rather exhausted tone, "Well…that definitely qualifies as a clamor," as discussion raged up around the square. Arms dropping to his sides from their previous position in a typical 'thinking' posture, the pirate continued, "Alright, Vaan, we leave it to you. Find as many people as you can, and tell them about the blatant over-exaggeration concerning Basch's execution."

"Got it!" came the chipper reply. In a flash, Vaan was out of sight, though the words, "I'm THE Basch Fon Ronsenburg!", among other statements of declaration, echoed throughout the town.

All three remaining party members blinked for a few moments before turning to give each other blank stares. Shrugging, Balthier motioned towards a bench, cocking his head ever so slightly in a way that told everyone, "Let's go enjoy the quiet while we can, eh?" Silent steps followed the pirate.

As time wore on, the conspicuous conversations concerning a certain 'executed' captain rang up all over the town. Fran winced as a few particularly rowdy citizens started cursing up a storm over the Marquis and his lies; after all, viera aren't commonly found among public cities, and their ears are more sensitive than one might care to think.

"So, Fran, what's eating at you lately?" Balthier cut in, his lather tone upsetting Fran in a strange way.

"What are you implying?" she asked hotly.

Blinking at the certainly unexpected reaction from his partner, the younger of the two males coughed slightly to regain calm composure. "Well, you have been acting out of sorts since the incident in the Lhusu Mines, and I just thought-"

"Well, you thought right," Fran replied, even if slightly colder than she meant to be. Balthier took a moment of silence before realizing that the armor-clad woman probably wasn't going to continue her point. Within the confides of her mind, Fran gave a small mental smile; for some reason, seeing Balthier in a tangle seemed to give her great pleasure.

Feeling slightly rebellious over Balthier's put-out mood, Fran decided to see just how deep she could drag this conversation out. "Have you noticed? Vaan's become much stronger." It was a small, nearly unnoticeably abnormal statement; Fran was going to start out slowly.

Giving a mental sigh, Balthier concluded that Fran was attempting to fall back into their usual line of partnership. "Well, I suppose that rude little upstart has to learn from somewhere."

"I believe the kid could use a little more refining," Basch added in, curious as to where the chat would lead, "though I can definitely see his brother's swordsmanship within him."

Balthier gave a thoughtful grin. "Perhaps I should teach him how to use the Altair…" For emphasis, he patted the bulge along his thigh that contained his trusty weapon of man-made destruction.

Fran scoffed. "Is that thing all you care about?" Giving her own small smile, she continued, "Have you not seen his hands?" Balthier gave a slightly miffed expression. "They're smooth, with lithe fingers. I believe he'd be better suited for a bow, wouldn't you agree?" Reaching a sly hand behind her, Fran tipped her bow into view for a few moments. "Hands such as Vaan's wouldn't be suited for such a weapon as yours; he's not as dimwitted as you are, either."

The sky pirate took that comment as a mock-joke. "Oh really? And I suppose learning from an unusual viera such as yourself would be a better option?"

"Yeah, I do," came the haughty reply.

Standing up, Balthier straightened out his luxurious outfit of choice, staring down at Fran with a sense of rivalry. "Well, then, how about we see for ourselves which of us can teach Vaan how to fight for real?"

Standing up herself, Fran heightened herself so that she nearly reached her partner eye to eye. "Though I see no point in frivolous tasks, I accept. Who knows; it could be excellent training for Vaan."

A playful smirk emerged. "Yes. Excellent, indeed."

Basch sighed, remaining in his seat on the bench. 'Young people these days,' he thought raggedly, 'Always getting into trouble…'

x.

Thanks to Vaan, the group had reached public ears, as well as not-so-public rebels of the Insurgence, who told them they could set up a meeting with the Marquis.

"It'll have to wait a while," one of the guerillas has said, "The Marquis is very busy at the moment, you see. Just retrieved Sir Larsa from wandering in the Mines; need time to catch up on international business. Hope you understand?"

Fortunately, Basch had attained directions to an expertly-hidden inn from one of the insurgents, whom guided the way to the back alleys where, hidden amongst the buildings and pile of rubbish, a door stood. Now inside the apparently opulent inn (despite its outer layout of less-than-upstanding dirt and grime), the group planned out their next move.

…Or rather, their next bet…

"How about we set the stakes higher?" Balthier suggested that night while Vaan was out with Basch, attempting to loosen his thoughts from finding Panelo and beating some truths out of "Lamont".

Fran gave the brunette a knowing look. "How about, if I win, you have to do all maintenance on everything, including management of the ship to polishing our weapons for the next fourteen suns."

Quirking an eyebrow, Balthier asked, "Is it really that hard managing that stuff?"

"When you've had no experience, which I'm sure you haven't, I assure you it's most difficult."

Scoffing, Balthier made a small shake of the head, though it seemed to be more a jerk to Fran than anything else. "Very well," he stated in an overconfident manner. "But if I win, there's none of this snippy attitude from you; you're to be quiet, and when you speak, it will be quick and to the point. I've had about enough to hear of smart-ass remarks from the rest of our quarry, I don't need you of all people to join them."

"Don't you think you're overreacting?" Fran asked.

Sighing, Balthier, sat down in the lobby chair. Rubbing his temples in an ever anticlimactic way, he said, "Perhaps just a tad. It's been a long day, let's sleep and worry about that half-pinned Ondore fella later…"

Then, with an exhausted grunt, the pirate lifted himself with a sort of graceful laziness, rather inelegantly gliding across the room towards the stairs where their rooms were.

Fran watched her partner go, feeling sorry for him. She continually forgot that humes' limits were far easier to breach than her own. Suddenly, her ears twitched; she could hear Vaan and Basch discussing something outside, despite all the ruckus in the lobby from partying Bherjerbians. Glaring at the rambunctious lot with sharp eyes displaying feminine disgust, the viera lifted herself beautifully from her seat and went outside to greet her friends.

When she reached the entrance to the inn, she noticed that Basch was nowhere to be seen. Walking over to Vaan, who seemed to be staring off into space, she stopped just behind him, and tapped him playfully on the shoulder.

Whirling around, Vaan gave a shout of surprise, calming immediately when he realized who had touched him. "Whoa, Fran! Don't startle me like that!" Rubbing the back of his head, he asked, "Balthier hit the hay?"

Fran gave a nod. "Yes, he told me we'd probably be staying at this inn for a few days, at least. Give the Marquis some time to cool down before we make our approach."

Vaan nodded in understanding. "Yeah, well, Basch went out to speak with the Resistance some more, to see how everything's coming. I was just watching him go…and thinking."

Looking up into his warm, caring eyes, Fran inquired further. "About Panelo?"

"…yeah." Somehow, hearing him say that simple phrase gave Fran a sort of pain. Not understanding the aspect as to why, she decided to change the subject to the source of why she spoke to him in the first place.

"I've watched you fight," she began, catching his immediate attention, "You've definitely improved since our first confrontation with each other." As she spoke, Fran paced circles around Vaan, as if inspecting him with a bored ease. "However," she stopped, directly in front of him, "you still need much training for the roads ahead." Holding a stiff arm out, Fran reached an open hand to Vaan mere inches from his chest. Flinching for a moment, it took the blonde a few seconds to realize what she wanted.

Shaking his head slightly, the young male hastily reached for the hilt of his sword, handing it to Fran with practiced ease.

The viera studied the blade with a sense of disguised mirth. Sighing, she handed it back to him. "Just as I thought. That blade shouldn't be suited for you, it's far too unbalanced. Where did you buy such a retched thing?"

Vaan examined the blade, then thought back as to where he bought it. "I think I got this from the guy back in the Barheim Passage…"

Fran gave a sigh. "No wonder it can't do anything. Vaan, listen, you need to learn to look for quality, not which sword is the shiniest." Vaan blinked, slowly comprehending what Fran was saying. "Also, you should have diversity in you choices. When your sword snaps, what do you do then? Perform magic? What if you've exhausted yourself to the point where you're unable to do so? What then?"

Vaan gave a blank look. "I…run away?"

Another sigh. "Yes, that would be what you would say, wouldn't it?" At the boy's disdainful expression, she continued, "I'm just saying that if you learned to wield another weapon, you'd be far more efficient to our cause."

Vaan mouthed a small "oh".

Staring at the blonde, Fran felt a sense of impatience growing. She could almost hear Balthier laughing at her attempts to teach another the ways of her fighting techniques. Still, she had to persevere; there was no way she'd let that sky pirate get the last laugh!

Reaching behind her, Fran pulled out another bow. Handing it to Vaan, she stated, "I bought this killer bow in one of the market streets. It's completely genuine, and I believe it'd suit your hands quite well."

Staring at the bow in a sense of transfixed awe, Vaan jerked up at the unusual choice of wording. "My hands?" he repeated.

"Yes," she said exasperatedly, "your hands. Now, let's get started, shall we?"

x.

In those few hours of training, Vaan could have sworn he noticed a massive change in Fran. When he first saw her, all he could think about was how gorgeous viera were…if all viera looked like Fran did, which he really hoped they didn't. Why? Well, because that made Fran special, and somehow, deep down, he enjoyed reveling in the thought that having Fran as a friend could be worthwhile.

The woman slowly taught Vaan how to use arrows, how to hold the bow, hold the arrow, and launch with precise accuracy. A new feeling had overcome the previous swordsman-turned-bowman that had never come over him for a long while. Just having the silver-locked girl near him, holding his hands, showing him the way to hold her ideal weapon, to use the same type of tool she used. Vaan could feel his adrenaline pumping.

As they continued the repetitive process of pull, aim, shoot, retrieve, Vaan also noticed how Fran seemed to be speaking much more openly than she usually did when anyone else was around. For as long as she had been with everyone, Vaan hadn't truly noticed her as a friend; simply as an ally and potential mechanic and healer, nothing more. But to be with her, like this, to truly get to know her…the blonde's heart thumped in his ears as he felt the viera's breath against his neck.

After he could finally hit a mark more than once in the same spot, Fran gave a smile and applauded him. "Wonderful. You're doing much better."

Giving a sheepish smile, Vaan felt his cheeks turn hot. "Well, nothing to it, I guess." Staring up at Fran, he said, "I have a great teacher…"

He started to give the bow back, but was stopped. "Keep it," she said, "We'll be practicing tomorrow morning, too. If you can continue to use this weapon as you've shown me you can, then it's yours."

Turning, the two headed back to the inn, where Vaan felt his senses melting away. He didn't notice the clinking their boots made on the cold, dank cobblestone, didn't notice the way the bricks seemed so much rougher in the dark, the way their shadows danced across the alley as they left the empty lot they had previously accommodated. All he could concentrate on was the previous hours he had shared with Fran, the way her hands steadied his own shaking ones, her encouraging words, her steamy breath against his neck.

He couldn't stop staring at her. For a long moment, Vaan relished in the fact that such a beautiful creature had done so much for an orphan like him.

Catching a glance to the sky, Vaan sighed; the stars were really luminous tonight. They glittered with a silent ferocity that captivated the blonde for moments on end, many more to come. However, as he lowered his gaze, his milky chocolate eyes caught sight of a skyscraping castle oblivion.

Ondore's mansion.

'That's where Panelo is…' he thought, stopping and staring up at the twisting spires that seemed so cold and ruthless when not blessed with the sun's rays. 'Don't worry…I'm coming soon…' he thought, feeing cooled by the night wind blowing through his hair.

"Vaan?" The boy was swiftly brought out of his thoughts by the platinum-haired beauty, standing by the doorway with a look of worry. Her expression seemed clear enough to him: Are you all right?

Nodding, Vaan strode briskly towards her, reaching her in seconds. Exchanging smiles, the younger of the two opened the door for the other, and the two entered the inn together.

When Vaan finally collapsed on his bed, his dreams were filled with armor-clad, chocolate-skinned hands gently overlaying his, silver hair brushing his chin, hot breath tickling his neck…a dream of teasing viera eyes, sharp and intelligent.

What a special viera Fran was.

x.

The next day seemed to breeze by. Fran had decided to give Balthier a try to teaching Vaan how to hold a gun, where the man failed miserably. Not only did Vaan seem unwilling to hold the heavy chunk of lead, but as Fran had expected, the blonde just couldn't seem to hold it correctly.

When Balthier finally gave up, Fran playfully patted him on the chest. "It's not your fault, Mr. Altair," she teased, "After all, your hands are one-of-a-kind, as they say." Giving a petty glare, the brunette pocketed his gun and wandered back to the inn, grumbling something about getting breakfast.

Meanwhile, Fran later continued her lessons with Vaan, where the two seemed to spend more joking around this time around than actually trying to aim. At first, Vaan had cracked teases about how Balthier's ears turned red when he was annoyed, and how he was short-tempered, even if he didn't seem like the type to be so. The viera found herself laughing, despite her best intentions towards her partner.

Still, their lessons continued on and off that day, as there was nothing more to do. Both viera and hume seemed to be two of a kind on opposite sides of a coin.

That night, the two were wrapping up another session of training, when Vaan suddenly halted as they were readying to leave. The tone in his voice told Fran to pay the utmost attention, all jokes aside. Vaan was being serious about something, and she was eager to see what he needed help in (or otherwise).

"Hey," he started, obviously nervous. Fran wondered what could be so hard that he couldn't say outright. He shuffled his feet a bit, cheeks turning pink. "Well, we do have one more day left, and I've basically mastered the bow you gave me, so…" Sighing, Vaan hastily said, "I was hoping that you and I could just, you know, spend some quality time together tomorrow! No training, no Balthier, no stupid Basch Fon What's-his-name; just you and me having a fun time."

Despite how Vaan was trying so hard to be serious, Fran couldn't help but burst into fits of laughter. At Vaan's disgruntled expression, Fran forced her giggles away, and said, "I apologize, Vaan. I just didn't expect something such as this from someone like you." Straightening, her composure regained, she added, "I have to admit, I find someone like you very easy to get along with and open up to." Grabbing the boy's hand, Fran began to lead him back to the inn. "So, I suppose daybreak tomorrow sounds good, eh?"

Vaan nodded enthusiastically, his face turning a brighter shade of pink. He had a feeling tomorrow was going to be very interesting…

x.

Curses and shouts were what awoke Basch the next morning. Yawning deeply, the former captain entered the main living area of their inn room and gave an incredulous stare towards their cockiest, most incompetent member of their party. The man was only wearing his most basic outer clothes, the chest plate and other shiny accessories tossed to the side for now. Instead of appearing dignified as always, Basch stared down at Balthier's figure sitting raggedly over the carpet, attempting to figure out how to put together some part for something the captain was oblivious to.

Wiping the sleep from his eyes, he asked, "May I ask what you're doing, sky pirate?" His voice sounded hoarse from thirst. Rubbing his neck and yawning once more, Basch strode into the kitchen to fetch a cup of water.

Letting out another barely-congealed curse, Balthier replied heavily, "I lost that damn bet, and now Fran is turning me into her personal lapdog for technological babble!"

Chugging down a few deep gulps of refreshing liquid, Basch inquired, "Mind if I ask what that thing even is?"

Balthier gave the man an aggravated expression. "Does it look like I know what this is?"

Basch gave a sympathetic sigh. When Fran wanted even (for whatever reason she felt unfair with), she gave no mercy…

Blinking, the wiry-haired blonde asked, "Speaking of, where are the two bow masters?"

The brunette pirate gave a scoff. "I don't know. I wake up, find a note telling me to assemble this bloody thing as my first 'project', and then has the gull to give me some nearly incomprehensible piece of schematics that wouldn't even make sense in the hands of a Judge…not that they're smart or anything, but you get my point."

Basch only grunted. This was to be a long, long day.

x.

"Oh, that?" Fran said, Vaan nodding eagerly. Smiling broadly, a sly glint catching in her eyes, the viera said, "Well, it isn't really anything, actually."

Despite the lack of humor, Vaan couldn't help but laugh at the stupidity of the matter at hand. "You know Balthier will kill you for this?"

"Yes, well," Fran leaned back in her chair, her spoon dug deep into a slowly melting sundae, "now he can learn what my job incorporates twenty-four/seven."

Vaan scooped some of his own sundae into his mouth. "Yeah, well, at least you know what you're doing. Me? I probably wouldn't make heads or tails of what it meant."

Eyes narrowing in amusement, Fran said, "Actually, it does make something." Vaan gave a blank stare, causing Fran's smile to widen. "Would you like to learn how to be a mechanic? Maybe then you can create what Balthier couldn't."

Smirking, the blonde readily agreed; just to see the look on Balthier's face was enough to learn the complex words and diagrams.

So, for the remainder of the day, the two continued their games of fun and adventurous exploration, though discussing mechanics through and through. By the time the sun began to set, the two had already stopped their studies, Vaan having proved that he could remember at least some of the basics.

"God, this stuff is hard," he whined as the two walked towards the edge of the sky city. The two were planning on watching the sunset.

"Yes, well, it takes a lot of practice to remember fully," Fran said, attempting to comfort her colleague. "Once you have some experience under your belt, things will be much better."

As the two sat in a park by the edge of the city, the smoothie mix of colors painted the sky oranges, pinks, reds, yellows. So many wonderful colors, all melting into each other. As the sun slowly sank, purples, violets, magentas, and blues began pouring into the mix, like a spilled paint can on a canvas of summer colors. Soon, the stars were out again, twinkling as before. But this time, there was no mansion to block the view.

"It's great up here, isn't it?" Vaan said, amazed by the beauty the stars shared hundreds of feet higher; hundreds of feet closer.

"Yes. It's as if nothing else has changed; that the stories and telling tales of when one lived in the Wood were still lived by to this very minute."

Glancing over to the viera, Vaan could tell she was in deep thought. "But…didn't you abandon the Wood to go with Balthier?"

Meeting the teen's eyes with her own, Fran explained, "Yes, I sought out man's technology, abandoning my heritage as viera of the Wood. Yet, somewhere deep within me, that loyalty still remains. I still feel comforted by the thought of the Wood, even if I no longer live within its dwellings of forests and wildlife."

"I see…"

"You are a very different one, Vaan," Fran said, "As the partner to a sky pirate, you meet many different people, both friend, foe, and in between. But you are the first to make me see humes in a different light."

"Oh, really?" Vaan asked, interested in how he had changed the viera in such a way.

"You speak your mind. You're willing to help others, you're always so determined; yet, you are easy-going, enjoying, calm, so many qualities that don't confide in another hume that confide in you." Fran gave a content smile. "You are special to me, Vaan, and I'm happy to have met you."

Vaan couldn't believe what he was hearing; it was exactly how he had felt! But…how could he tell her without feeling foolish and awkward?

'Well,' he thought, 'here goes nothing-' before he could even get one word out, a certain person interrupted them.

"There you are!" Balthier waltzed up to the couple, making them jerk their heads over towards the approaching pirate, whose clothes were disheveled, hair uncombed, and expression sour. "You two should head back to the inn and get some rest; we're heading to Ondore's by mid-afternoon, so be ready by then."

There was no outburst, no complaint, no insults, no jokes. Simply a message, followed by an about-face and a clump, clump of boots hitting the cobblestone path as Balthier made his way back to the inn, exactly the way he first came.

"Balthier is annoyed," Fran whispered, enough so Vaan could hear, but soft enough to feel private from others. "I should go apologize." Without another word, Fran too stood up, giving chase to her partner who was already far ahead of her.

Vaan sat on the bench a while longer, feeling more foolish than he thought he would have been earlier. He supposed that this was karma at its worse. He waited 2...3...4...5 seconds before standing up and slowly following after them, just as the last bits of sun sunk away from view.

x.

That night, Vaan didn't sleep. Instead, he had laid awake on the floor of the living area. Upon his arrival, he'd realized that Balthier had convinced Fran to head to bed, leaving the room dark, save for a light in the corner, obviously meant for Vaan whenever he decided to come home. However, instead of turning the light off and heading to bed, something caught his eye.

There, on the floor, still left in a pile of rubbish, was Fran's 'special project' she had Balthier attempt to compile. Walking over to the matt where everything was laid out, Vaan took a gander at the hand-written instructions made by Fran, and slowly began to piece together what they meant.

Vaan worked late into the night constructing whatever contraption Fran had made. There were many instances where he had trouble deciphering what exactly the instructions wanted him to do, but still he didn't give up.

By the time morning hit, Vaan had placed in the last piece, and squinted at what he had created. What he had formed made him glad that Balthier had given up on the project.

x.

Fran yawned deeply as she clambered down the stairs; from the few rooms in the inn, hers happened to be the upstairs portion. Thus, to reach the portion where the boys slept, she needed to unlock a door at the top of the stairs, the head down them to enter the same section where the other three members of her party went to.

However, as she reached the bottom step, she noticed a small lump cuddled near the plush couches and chairs, tables, and one small, dully shining lamp. Curiously, Fran tiptoed quietly over to the lump, and saw that it was Vaan, laid sprawled across Balthier's working matt, and holding onto what was unmistakably what she had assigned to Balthier to assemble. Staring at its completed form, she gave a warm smile, her heart swelling.

It was a heart made out of two bows, an arrow strung through them. Intimately carved letters depicting the message 'Vaan x Fran' was scrawled inside the heart.

Kneeling next to the boy, Fran laid a blanket over Vaan. From how deeply he was sleeping, the viera could only guess how long he had been awake completing her challenge.

Sighing, she leaned downwards, and let her lips meet Vaan's forehead. Even though his sleep, Fran could see the blonde's lips curve into a smile.

Standing up, Fran exited back to her room, content on waiting a few more hours before waking the other two up.

After all, a few hours was plenty of time to give Balthier a new project.

-OWARI-

A/N: Wow…that turned out longer than I planned. (Sweatdrop) Well, there we are; fluff, but not as much I wanted (wanted full-blown passionate kisses, but didn't get them) Also, I kinda seemed to just drop Panelo somewhere in the far regions of the Westersand with no hopes of Vaan every thinking about her ever again…lol Well, despite that, I hope you enjoyed the world's first introduction to Vaan x Fran! (Smiles)

Review are greatly appreciated!

-Puppy


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